Paudie Coffey (Waterford, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I acknowledge that the Deputy welcomes the deposit protection scheme because it is a scheme that has been long called for. I am glad we were able to legislate to allow for that recently in both Houses of the Oireachtas. The Residential Tenancies (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 2015 was enacted on 4 December 2015 and provides for the establishment of a tenancy deposit protection scheme. Under the scheme, landlords will lodge tenancy deposits with the PRTB at the same time that they register the tenancy. The PRTB will hold these deposits for the duration of the tenancy and will retain the interest generated on the deposit funds to fund the cost of operating the scheme. At the end of the tenancy, where there is agreement, the deposit will be repaid to the tenant. Where there is disagreement, the parties may apply to the PRTB for dispute resolution. The scheme will be a custodial scheme, operated by the PRTB. It is likely that the PRTB will outsource aspects of scheme administration in much the same way as it outsources its registration functions.

The deposit protection scheme provisions of the Act will be commenced as soon as the necessary conditions are in place to support its roll-out. These will include changes to the supporting information technology and contracts with outsourced project partners, where appropriate. The establishment of the scheme will be a major project and the priority for 2016 will be the necessary planning and procurement activities associated with its set-up. It is expected that the scheme will be operational later in 2016 or early in 2017. Until the scheme is operational and ready to go live, there will be no change in the administration of tenancy deposits under the Act.

My Department is working closely with the PRTB in the planning process and is preparing for the scheme, including the necessary resources for its effective implementation. Exchequer funding of €1.2 million was provided in budget 2016 to cover the costs of scheme set-up and development, including IT development costs, system analysis and design and build costs. Additional staff resources for the PRTB were approved in the context of the Government’s recent announcement on a package of measures for rent stability and housing supply. My Department continues to keep the resources available to the PRTB under close review and engages regularly with the board on this matter.

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